


This Burden Came to Me and Made a Home Inside

by keepfabandgayon



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Gen, M/M, Panic Attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-25
Updated: 2013-09-25
Packaged: 2017-12-27 15:37:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/980651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keepfabandgayon/pseuds/keepfabandgayon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Newt's panic attacks weren't usually this bad.</p><p>[also starring Hermann's cane as an anchor.]</p>
            </blockquote>





	This Burden Came to Me and Made a Home Inside

**Author's Note:**

> title from imagine dragons' "monster".

Newt's panic attacks weren't usually this bad.

Usually, he felt the unease creep over him before the real panic settled in. Usually he had time to peel off his gloves, grab himself a glass of water and his meds, and take a seat on the beaten-up couch that straddled the line between his and Hermann's sides of the lab. Usually they passed within minutes.

And usually, they just _weren't this bad._

Hermann heard a thump and a clatter from across the lab. He turned around sharply, ready to shout at him that if he didn't leave bits of kaiju lying around he wouldn't trip on them, but then he noticed Newt sitting on the ground in a rather awkward position, eyes wide, tears slowly rolling down his face.

"Shit. Where's--" He grabbed his cane, but barely bothered to lean on it as he half-ran, half-stumbled the few feet to Newt and slid the last few feet on his knees. "Where'd your medication?"

Newt turned his head toward his desk.

Hermann handed him his cane. "Hold this for me, all right? I'll be right back." He used Newt's carts for support as the crossed Newt's half of the room, thanking him in his head for at least putting the brakes on, and rummaged through the drawers for the bottle of pills. He filled up the glass on Newt's desk as well before returning to him, settling more softly onto his knees this time. "Here." He held out the glass and waited for Newt to slowly unwrap one white-knuckled hand from its tight grip around the cane and shakily grab hold of the glass.

Hermann took care of getting a pill out while Newt gulped down half the glass of water. After Newt had swallowed the pill, Hermann gently extracted the cane from Newt's other hand, keeping hold of that hand with one of his own as he set the cane aside, and he moved over next to Newt and leaned back against the table behind them and a little to the side into Newt, still clasping their hands together. Newt leaned in fully and tilted his head to the side to rest it against Hermann's shoulder as he waited for the medication to take effect.

"Thank you," Newt whispered, still shaking.

"Did you think I would just let you sit there?"

"Yes."

It wasn't the first time Newt had said something like that during a panic attack. He was very honest at those times, sometimes brutally so but more often just self-deprecating.

"I may fight with you but that doesn't mean I want to see you suffer." Hermann reached up and ran his free hand slowly through Newt's hair; it was getting long. Newt closed his eyes and leaned more heavily against Hermann's side.

"I know. Sometimes I forget, though. Or, well, Paddy does."

Hermann, as usual, didn't comment on Newt's rather juvenile decision to name his panic attacks Paddy. Rather, he said, "Tell Paddy to kindly go fuck himself."


End file.
